Suffolk SEND school shares dramatic increase in student reading ages with Reading Plus
Woodbridge Road Academy were a new school when they implemented DreamBox Reading Plus, enabling them to use the online reading development programme from the very beginning of their journey. Woodbridge are part of Paradigm Trust, which uses Reading Plus regularly, and chose the programme for its evidence in rapidly improving reading levels.
As a SEND school, Woodbridge were looking to support their cohort to increase their reading ages - preparing them for academic success and life.
In seven months, from September 2025 to April 2026, Woodbridge has made an average of:
- +1.3 year-level gains in text complexity.
- +27 wpm in fluency gains.
“We wanted to ensure that reading was promoted across the school using evidence-based strategies. The ability to read well removes a significant barrier to learning for our students, including enabling them to access GCSE qualifications as well as equipping them for the wider world.”
Discover more of what Sian Ransom, Assistant Principal at Woodbridge Road Academy, shared about the context of her school, how Reading Plus was implemented, and its effect on reading levels and confidence.
Woodbridge Road Academy:
- Supports 85 students with communication and interaction needs - some of these students have ASD and/or ADHD.
- All students have EHCPs and are admitted from the Local Authority.
- Students typically arrive with low reading ages and anxiety over reading.
Improved reading ages and confidence
Using Reading Plus, our reading ages have improved across the school.
Students are more confident, which is particularly seen in our English lessons, where they actively want to take part in reading. They try to access harder texts because they want to read so they can talk about the stories with their peers.
Students also want to try to improve their reading age, which motivates them even further. Examples of progress from our students with Reading Plus include:
Year 7 student - 5 years and 8 months of progress in one year.
Year 9 student - 2 years and 1 month of progress in one year.
Year 10 student - 10 years and 4 months of progress in one year.
Year 11 student - 3 years and 9 months of progress in one year.
Implementation and reading within Woodbridge
We introduced daily reading lessons, which included protected time for Reading Plus.
All of our students have these lessons at the same time each day. Reading Plus is timetabled twice a week, the other is a library slot and two explicitly taught reading sessions. Students are set in groups according to their reading ages - typically one member of staff to five students.
Our approach of using Reading Plus in addition to our taught lessons means that students choose to read more often, and their engagement in lessons improves as a result.
We also offer Reading Plus as optional homework, and some students access this.
Supporting every learner while saving teachers time
Reading Plus offers our students a structured intervention, which means that we are able to provide a pathway of support for all our readers without it being time-consuming on the part of teachers.
Staff were all able to access free online training for the programme, although most found it user-friendly even without the training.
It is important for all staff to understand the why and to be proactive whilst students are on Reading Plus. This is really integral to making Reading Plus a success.
My favourite aspects of the programme include:
- The students enjoy receiving certificates provided by Reading Plus - this is a big motivator and are greatly valued.
- It is easy to add student groups and assign staff so that they are able to monitor progress.
- It means that all staff can teach reading regardless of experience.
Comprehensive reports to guide teaching
Our Trust Director of Pedagogy and Learning sends through regular reports and data generated within Reading Plus so that we are able to adapt learning.
They have been helpful in identifying students who are not yet ready for Reading Plus - or those who need extra help within their groups. I send the feedback to the group leads to implement.
We take into account the mood and challenges of each student, as one change in routine or a bad day can have an effect on their performance.
Student enjoyment and motivation
Students access the programme happily, and because the majority of our students use it, this has created a culture of importance around using it.
Combining Reading Plus with our own reading lessons and library time gives them enough variety that they stay interested, and engagement stays high. They offer students a different experience individually, so there is something for everyone to enjoy.
Students like being able to select what they want to read and find support very helpful when answering each text’s comprehension questions - such as the ReRead feature, which allows them to revisit a section of text. This is particularly helpful to our students with working memory difficulties.
Book a brief introductory meeting online with one of our Reading Development Consultants to explore the advantages of Reading Plus for your school.
Call:
0191 389 6078 (option 1)
